Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures
Overcrowding with associated delays in patient care is a problem faced by emergency departments (EDs) worldwide. ED overcrowding can be the result of poor ED department design and prolonged throughput due to staffing, ancillary service performance, and flow processes. As such, the problem may be add...
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
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The Korean Society of Emergency Medicine
2019-09-01
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Series: | Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://www.ceemjournal.org/upload/pdf/ceem-18-022.pdf |
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author | Peter McKenna Samita M Heslin Peter Viccellio William K Mallon Cristina Hernandez Eric J Morley |
author_facet | Peter McKenna Samita M Heslin Peter Viccellio William K Mallon Cristina Hernandez Eric J Morley |
author_sort | Peter McKenna |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Overcrowding with associated delays in patient care is a problem faced by emergency departments (EDs) worldwide. ED overcrowding can be the result of poor ED department design and prolonged throughput due to staffing, ancillary service performance, and flow processes. As such, the problem may be addressed by process improvements within the ED. A broad body of literature demonstrates that ED overcrowding can be a function of hospital capacity rather than an ED specific issue. Lack of institutional capacity leads to boarding in the ED with resultant ED crowding. This is a problem not solvable by the ED and must be addressed as an institution-wide problem. This paper discusses the causes of ED overcrowding, provides a brief overview of the drastic consequences, and discusses possible cures that have been successfully implemented. |
first_indexed | 2024-04-10T07:28:41Z |
format | Article |
id | doaj.art-5838b7c55a0e419ca2b97032486a2834 |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 2383-4625 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-04-10T07:28:41Z |
publishDate | 2019-09-01 |
publisher | The Korean Society of Emergency Medicine |
record_format | Article |
series | Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine |
spelling | doaj.art-5838b7c55a0e419ca2b97032486a28342023-02-24T04:12:48ZengThe Korean Society of Emergency MedicineClinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine2383-46252019-09-016318919510.15441/ceem.18.022238Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and curesPeter McKenna0Samita M Heslin1Peter Viccellio2William K Mallon3Cristina Hernandez4Eric J Morley5 Department of Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USA Department of Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USA Department of Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USA Department of Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USA Department of Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USA Department of Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USAOvercrowding with associated delays in patient care is a problem faced by emergency departments (EDs) worldwide. ED overcrowding can be the result of poor ED department design and prolonged throughput due to staffing, ancillary service performance, and flow processes. As such, the problem may be addressed by process improvements within the ED. A broad body of literature demonstrates that ED overcrowding can be a function of hospital capacity rather than an ED specific issue. Lack of institutional capacity leads to boarding in the ED with resultant ED crowding. This is a problem not solvable by the ED and must be addressed as an institution-wide problem. This paper discusses the causes of ED overcrowding, provides a brief overview of the drastic consequences, and discusses possible cures that have been successfully implemented.http://www.ceemjournal.org/upload/pdf/ceem-18-022.pdfcrowdingemergency service, hospitalpatient safety |
spellingShingle | Peter McKenna Samita M Heslin Peter Viccellio William K Mallon Cristina Hernandez Eric J Morley Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine crowding emergency service, hospital patient safety |
title | Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures |
title_full | Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures |
title_fullStr | Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures |
title_full_unstemmed | Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures |
title_short | Emergency department and hospital crowding: causes, consequences, and cures |
title_sort | emergency department and hospital crowding causes consequences and cures |
topic | crowding emergency service, hospital patient safety |
url | http://www.ceemjournal.org/upload/pdf/ceem-18-022.pdf |
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